Doctors (e.g., primary care providers, dermatologists, etc.) routinely take pictures of patients' skin. Pictures are taken in a variety of conditions (different types of devices, cameras, cell phones, and environments). This results in inconsistent pictures, making it difficult to identify longitudinal changes in patients' skin condition. Furthermore, conventional devices used to take pictures are typically limited in the type of imaging information that can be captured.
One such conventional device is a bulky attachment to a smart phone that fits over the integrated camera of the smart phone. When installed this conventional device obscures the integrated camera and does not permit the acquisition of far field images. In order to access the “normal” far field camera mode, the conventional device must be removed from the smart phone. Furthermore, the light source of this conventional device is not programmable and the device does not provide an integrated and intelligent software tool suite.